Reality
by Clear Eyed Dreamer
Summary: AU BV Bulma is adviser to Juu, the queen of Bangou. Vegeta is a prisoner on Frieza's ship. Bulma is given glimpses into a strangers tortured life through a series of dreams. These dreams start to make sense when she comes face to face with the victim.
1. Chapter 1: The Nightmares Commence

Reality

Summary: AU, B/V With Bulma's new position as advisor to the head of the royal family of Bangou, she is taught simple mind techniques. With her new meditation techniques, comes horrid nightmares. She soon finds that her dreams are not just that, but someone else's reality.

Chapter 1: The Nightmares Commence

A flash of white and aqua is all that's seen as a young woman hurriedly makes her way through corridors of brick and stone. She is Bulma, advisor to the Queen of Bangou, a small planet in the eastern hemisphere. She has been advisor to the acting queen since the two women were young kids, but just recently, with the crowning of the new queen, Bulma's duties had increased. The head of the royal family is expected to have a priestess as a personal advisor, so to appease the council as much as possible, Bulma had taken up lessons in simple religious procedures as well as in simple magics. So far, those lessons weren't taking root in her brain. She was more a fan of the scientific.

Her flat shoes sounded with clicks as she walked as fast as she could in the damned dress that she was required to wear. It was floor length and white, with a sweeping v-neck trimmed in gold, and long bell sleeves, also trimmed in gold. She also had a large golden sash tied around her waist with the ends of it flowing behind her. She was required to pin her aqua curls up on her head as opposed to her preferred state of leaving it loose around her face. All this amounted to a very uncomfortable young woman.

Bulma was late, and she knew that she was to be reprimanded for it. She was to meet with the high priestess of the royal family who had also served as advisor to the current queens lost brother, the former King. With a huff of air, she finally made it to the center of the temple and walked in to find the older woman kneeled down in front of a large stone figure.

The high priestess was an older woman and quite bitter. She had wanted her own daughter, Marron, to be advisor to the current Queen, but she had been forced to give her daughter up to the ruler of the galaxy, Frieza, when she was quite young. She was not impressed with the fact that she had lost her place as the head advisor to the royal family just because her charge had been lost somewhere in the galaxy. She knew they would find the king, it was just a matter of time, and then she would be reinstated. Everything was still being rebuilt with their change of planets, so she knew the focus was more on rebuilding their community then on doing anything of importance.

Bulma cleared her throat and took a few unwary steps toward the older woman. "I'm sorry I'm late, Caistina, but-"

"Hush," the older woman replied in a hard voice. She got to her feet slowly and turned to face Bulma. She was tall and imposing, with a thin face and piercing green eyes. Her hair was long and silver from her many years of manipulating the magics. "I don't care to hear your excuses, child. This is the third time in the past few days that you've been late. I refuse to continue with your lessons until you learn some responsibility."

Bulma's eyes went wide, she never expected that the priestess would take things to such a high level, "But, Caistina, to have an advisor with no training would be an insult to the royal family. I beg you to reconsider."

"There will be no reconsidering," Caistina hissed, "I have spoken. You can work on your own if you'd like, but I will no longer train you." She turned her back to Bulma, signalling the end of their meeting.

Bulma narrowed her eyes at the woman's back before turning on her heel and stalking out. The audacity of that woman, going against the councils orders. Not that she personally cared about the refusal to train her, but Bulma wasn't fond of the idea of going in front of the council and explaining why Caistina had lost her patience with her.

The council was made up of the most successful men and woman of Bangou, Bulma's own father being part of it. She saw them as nothing but old men and women stuck in the old times and old way of doing things, which she did feel was right. She didn't know how they could expect the planet to go forward when they refused to update their way of thinking. They were the final authority, but often a silent one. They only upheld the laws and rules of the planet and made sure that things were running smoothly. Bulma had never seen them once interfere with the ruling parties judgement.

She walked out of the temple and took a deep breath. The air here was clean and refreshing, and made her glad that they had made the switch from the over industrialized planet they once inhabited. They had traded it to the lord of the galaxy in return for this one. He had had an interest in the industries created on their planet.

The temple was situated on the edge of a mountain which overlooked the valley and housing communities below. Everything was green and flourishing. The palace had been built on the eastern side of the valley. The intricate stone building could be seen from any vantage point. That was where she lived and had lived since her father had been elected to the council when she was very young. She was then appointed as the advisor to the princess. They had thought at the time that there was no way that the princess would end up being the ruler.

Bulma walked over to the side of the temple where she had left her personal vehicle, a small friendly pink dragon that she had befriended when they landed on the planet. She smiled and petted it's head, "back to the palace, Ruby," she told it cheerfully as she jumped on the back of it, making sure to adjust her clothing so as not to appear indecent. She enjoyed the breeze that blew around her as her friend flew her towards the palace walls. It felt so peaceful to be up above everything.

All too soon, the small dragon landed in the palace courtyard. Bulma climbed off of it and gave it another quick pet, delighted with it's happy squeal, before letting it run off to play in the courtyard. She watched it go with a contented look before walking into the palace, greeting the guards as she went. It wasn't long before she found her way to the throne room and walked in through the large, fancy double doors. There was a long violet carpet running down the middle of the room, and various paintings of former royalty on the walls. Bulma had never liked the throne room, neither on this planet or the former. She always felt like she was being watched.

At the far end of the long room sat the Queen, looking horribly bored as a young man was showing her what looked to be building plans. She looked up when she heard the doors open, the corners of her mouth upturning slightly as she saw her friend. She was a lovely blonde woman with bright blue eyes, but a serious demeanour. The former king, her twin brother, looked the exact opposite of her and actually possessed the personality to be in charge, a trait his sister was lacking in. "Bulma," she greeted in a bored voice as her friend walked up to her, "I'm so glad you're here."

Bulma bowed slightly as she stopped in front of her queen, a custom that was to be expected of her that the two ignored when they were in private, "you won't be, Princess Juu, I have not so good news."

"Any news is more interesting then this," the acting queen, Juu, replied, casting a bored glance at the now insulted man at her side.

Bulma smiled as she dismissed him, "well, Caistina has-"

"Wait," Juu interrupted and stood from her throne, "let us go to my private quarters. I don't want to be here any more then I absolutely have to be."

Bulma waited for her friend to join her before turning and accompanying her out of the room. When the pair had safely made it to Juu's private quarters, Bulma heard a sigh of relief escape the blonde's lips. With a laugh, Bulma plopped herself down on the plush red sofa that adorned one of the walls in her friends living quarters. "How did this morning go?"

"Horrible," Juu replied and leaned down from behind on the back of the sofa's matching chair. "I don't know how Jay did this, it's unbearably boring."

"Well, to be fair, he was brought up to do this, you were kind of just thrown into it," Bulma stated, "how do you think I feel? I have minimal experience advising anything, let alone the ruler. I was supposed to be a companion, only an 'advisor' in title."

"I feel so bad for you," Juu replied with a roll of her eyes, "how horrible it must be for you."

"Hey, at least you don't have to deal with the nasty witch," Bulma stated with a wrinkle of her nose.

Juu chuckled, "what did Caistina do to you now?"

"Nothing, just refuse to train me anymore," Bulma told her and rolled her eyes. "She's been out to get me from the very beginning."

"Bulma," Juu groaned, "what did you do? You were late again, weren't you?" she accused and went on without waiting for a reply, "how are we going to explain this to the council? They were wary of letting you stay my advisor as it was, now they're probably going to replace you with Caistina and that's the last thing I want."

"She did say I could practise and train on my own," Bulma supplied with a shrug, "I'll let the council know that I plan to and maybe they'll take mercy."

"You know they won't," Juu stated. "I have a meeting with them tomorrow regarding the lord of the galaxy visiting. We'll have to break the news to them then."

"Ugh, why is that thing coming here anyway?" Bulma asked. She didn't like the lord, something was off about him. Possibly the way he purged planets and killed those not willing to bow down to him.

"He just wants to meet with me and make sure everything is going well. Should just be a short meeting, as I'm sure he has way more important things to attend to," Juu stated, and sent Bulma a glare to silence her, knowing a rude comment about the lord was on the tip of her tongue.

"I won't have to attend, will I?" Bulma grumbled, knowing full well that she would be required too.

"You know the answer to that," Juu replied. She unbent from her position and stretched her back. "I'm sure I should return before they come looking for me. I miss the days of having nothing to do."

Bulma smiled in acknowledgement and stood from her seat. "Lead the way,"

---

Bulma sat in front of the mirror in her own bedroom which was situated off Juu's private quarters. She happily plucked each and every pin out of her hair, letting her long aqua locks fall around her shoulders. She brushed it out before leaving her seat and walking into her changing room, shedding the formal advisor wear for a knee-length, thin strapped navy blue dress. She missed her freedom to choose what to wear.

Lighting four candles, she placed them throughout the room and sat cross-legged on the floor between them. She had promised Juu that she would continue practising and she planned to follow through on that promise. Caistina had taught her how to meditate and try to reach out with her mind. It wasn't long before Bulma had cleared her mind and was feeling the presence of different people in the palace. She could feel presences, but anymore then that, her brain had yet to advance to. After a few minutes, she gave up and blew out the candles. She climbed into her bed and laid her head down, falling asleep not long after.

Her slumber was soon interrupted by a series of images. She watched helplessly as a poor man was tortured and beat until he was unconscious, she watched the blood flow from various wounds and stain the clothes he wore and the floor underneath him, she watched as the light glinted off a short blade that was destined for his torso…

Bulma awoke with a start, perspiration making it's way down the sides of her face. She closed her eyes tight and wished the haunting images away, trying hard to forget the horrid nightmare.


	2. Chapter 2: The Man in the Cell

Reality

A/N: Thank you to my reviewers, glad you like this story. As asked for, here is the next chapter.

Chapter 2: The Man in the Cell

Bulma could feel her eyelids droop as she sat at the Queen's side in the throne room. As uncomfortable as the wooden chair was, she just couldn't keep her eyes open. She had been true to her word and had spent the past three nights practicing what mind techniques she could, and afterwards every night she had experienced terrifying realistic nightmares. It had gotten to the point where she was putting off going to sleep as long as she could so she wouldn't have to endure them. This left her tired and listless during the day. She had the option of stopping her meditation, but to do so would mean losing her spot as advisor to Juu and moving out of the palace. The council had ruled that Bulma would have to show a certain amount of progress every week to remain in her current position.

Bulma barely stifled a yawn as she looked towards Juu. She smiled at the obviously bored expression on her friends face. They had been meeting with various contractors all day that were vying for the chance to build another city not far from the capital. The small planet only contained four major cities, but with the growing population, the council had suggested that they build a fifth. Juu hadn't cared one way or the other, but now it was her responsibility to choose contractors, layouts and so many other things that Bulma didn't even want to think about.

Juu glanced towards Bulma and sent her a dirty look upon seeing her friends smile. Juu rolled her eyes, wondering briefly what she had done to deserve this. She was on the eleventh contractor that day. Each one had different ideas for the city. She was partial to the more sleek and modern look of steel and metals, but knew that the council would lean more towards the plans that the current contractor was showing her. This one was erected with stone and brick, perfectly matching the other four cities. She didn't want her mark on the planet to be exactly like every other city, she wanted hers to be unique. As she pretended to listen to the man's presentation, she was carefully calculating just how she could make sure the council would see her way on this project. There were five council members, Bulma's father, another older man named Roshi, Caistina's brother Forth, some grouchy old man that Juu couldn't even remember the name of, and a newer member, a young woman named Chichi. She knew she could rely on Bulma to convince her father to vote her way. Roshi would also be an easy vote. He happened to have an adopted son that had had a crush on Juu for years, and this wouldn't be the first time she had used the young man to get a vote her way out of Roshi. All she needed was one more vote. She hadn't had much contact with the younger woman before and didn't really know much about her. She was curious to know how she had made it onto the council though. She may have to make a visit to see Chichi later that day and see what she could do about retaining that third vote.

Bulma could feel herself drifting into sleep when the creak of the throne room door snapped her back. She looked up to see a brazen blonde haired woman enter the room and walk quickly towards the throne. She was Launch, one of the servants to the throne. Her family had served the royal family for generations. Bulma had spent some time with her, but not a lot. It didn't look good for her to socialize with the servants, yet another thing she greatly disliked about her new position.

"My queen," Launch spoke hurriedly, her airy voice full of urgency, "you must come to the ship docks. Lord Frieza's ship has asked for clearance to land."

"What?" Juu exclaimed as she jumped to her feet. She dismissed the contractor with a wave of her hand as she rushed towards the doors of the room, followed by both Bulma and Launch. "Why was I not made aware of this before now?"

"I'm sorry, your highness," Launch apologized, trying hard to keep pace with the queen and her advisor. "but his ship was cloaked and our radars didn't pick it up."

"Why is he even here now?" Juu growled, "he wasn't supposed to come for another five days. This is completely unacceptable!"

"We can always deny him landing clear-" Bulma started but the stern, angry look from Juu cut her off mid-word.

Juu rushed through the palace and out through the back doors which led to the landing dock. She made it right after the ship had landed and stood just outside the door with Bulma to her right, Launch had disappeared back in the hallway. She tried her hardest to plaster a pleasant look on her face as the ships door slid open and a tall green man and another short, plump pink man filled the space. They were Zarbon and Dodoria, the Lord's personal advisors and guards. They led the way down the ship's ramp, stopping at the bottom.

Juu walked up to them, "I'm sorry that I'm so late in appearance, but I was not informed that Lord Frieza would be visiting today. To the best of my recollection, he was not to come until five days from now."

"This is true," Dodoria replied, "but his Lordship has decided to make a vacation of his visit and has requested that he be allowed to spend a few days on your lovely planet."

"That would be our pleasure of course," Juu replied with forced cheerfulness. She couldn't even stand the sight of these two.

"How lovely, then," came the slimy voice from the top of the ramp, where Frieza had come to stand. The white and purple coloured man stood there with a sadistic smirk on his face. He walked slowly down the ramp as Juu bowed her head. He walked past his two servants to stand in front of her, "I'm so happy that you've agreed to my stay. You see, I have a sentimental attachment to this planet."

"How could I refuse?" Juu asked, finally looking to him. If she refused, her planet would be no more.

Frieza chuckled, "how very true. Come," he said, taking her arm in his hand and leading her back towards the palace, "let us go speak. I wish to know everything about what you've accomplished."

Bulma glared at the green and pink men as she let them walk past her before finally trailing after the group into the palace.

They had positioned themselves in the royal board room and had spoken amongst themselves for several hours. Frieza was interested to know everything about the planets progression and how Juu was holding up as queen. Bulma had stayed silent the entire time, sitting to Juu's right, until a question finally entered her mind. She took the slight lapse in conversation as an opportunity to ask it. "Excuse me, Lord Frieza, but why do you have such an interest in this planet? It's nothing special."

Frieza turned his gaze to the woman, "the truth, servant girl," he said cruelly, delighting in Bulma's barely suppressed anger at the title, "is that I had a long history with the former royal family of this planet. Unfortunately, the race has died out, it's very tragic."

Bulma had her own ideas about just how the race came to be no more. It took just a moment before she realised the error in Frieza's comment, "but it hasn't died out, my Lord," she was careful to add just enough of a tone of disgust to his title, "there is still one left."

"What?" Frieza growled. How would this simple minded woman possibly know of his 'pet'?

"That's right. There was one dark haired man on this planet when we got here. He was a little confused and had a nasty bump on his head, but he was still here," Bulma declared, proud of herself for remembering.

Frieza frowned, "well, this is an interesting development. Tell me, " he turned his attention back to Juu, "where is this man now?"

"I…I don't know…" Juu replied, blushing slightly and looking to Bulma for the answer.

"He's married to one of our women, a woman on the council named Chichi," Bulma told him. She liked the young woman, the two had spent a day together not that long ago.

"Hm, interesting indeed," Frieza said quietly, calculating the risks involved with letting the man live. He supposed for now, he would let him be, but he was going to pay a visit to the man before he left the planet.

---

"He is completely and utterly creepy," Bulma stated, shuddering.

Juu and her sat in Juu's private quarters late that night. "He's not so bad," Juu replied, staring at her reflection in the mirror. Was that possibly a wrinkle forming under her eye?

"Oh come on, you're kidding me, right?" Bulma replied as she paced back and forth, "I don't trust him. And 'the race has died out', what a piece of work that guy is! The race didn't 'die out', he killed them all!" With Juu's not amused look, Bulma pushed on, "you know it's true, don't look at me like that."

"Bulma, give it a rest, alright?" Juu sighed. "I need your support on this, I don't exactly appreciate having him looking over my shoulder."

"Then tell him to leave! Tell him to pack his bags and go back to whatever place he calls home!" Bulma exclaimed.

Juu gritted her teeth as she turned to regard her friend, "I've just about had it with you, Bulma. It isn't as easy as you seem to think it is."

"Whatever," Bulma replied and stalked off towards her bedroom, all the while muttering under her breath.

---

Bulma tossed and turned in her bed, sweat dripping from her forehead and her breath coming ragged. She was in the middle of another of her nightmares. She could see more of the room this time than she ever had before. It was a large cell with thick metal bars and metal walls. It was dimly lit by one light hanging overhead off the high ceiling. There were no windows and only had a hard bench against one wall. A man, the man Bulma had witnessed night after night, sat in the middle of the floor. His legs were crossed and his head was bowed. He was a strong man and Bulma knew that the only thing keeping him from escaping his torture was the fact that his captor kept him weak and injured. She heard heavy footsteps making their way towards the cell he was in. The man raised his head, revealing dark, vengeful eyes and a face of stone. Before Bulma could see what happened next, she awoke.

---

The footsteps were familiar, and he knew Lord Frieza would soon be upon him. Lord, he repeated the title to himself in his head, and spat on the floor of his cell. Frieza was no more a lord then he was a free man. He hadn't tasted freedom in several years. He had been cooped up in this cell, often being beat and other times being sent out to kill. His spirit was broken, his dignity was in tatters, but he still had his pride. He refused to let Frieza take his pride away. He knew who he was, he was royalty, he was heir to the throne of Vegeta-sei. He still held on to the hope that he would one day walk on his home planet again. Some days that was all that kept him going.

He watched the despicable alien open his cell and walk up to him. "Vegeta," Frieza said with a mischievous smirk, "you've outgrown your welcome."

Vegeta narrowed his eyes, wondering what the disgusting thing was alluding to. Maybe he was finally going to kill him…

Frieza snapped his fingers and Zarbon and Dodoria went to either side of Vegeta's body and hauled him to his feet. "Good night, Vegeta," he said with a laugh before letting off a blast of energy into his chest.


	3. Chapter 3: Paining

Reality

Chapter 3: Paining

Bulma lurched from her bedroom, one hand on her stomach, the other against the doorway to brace herself. Her stomach was churning and had woken her up out of a deep sleep. She groaned and doubled over. She didn't know what was happening to her, but she felt like there was a knife stuck in her abdomen and someone was slowly turning it. With another rush of searing pain Bulma dropped to her knees. Trying hard to fight back a sense of panic, she tried to rise to her feet. She couldn't find the strength in her legs to stand and collapsed again. Breathing deeply she gave in to the overwhelming darkness creeping over her vision.

---

Caistina paced back and forth in the temple of Bangou. Her mind was hard at work. She had seen the irresponsible young woman collapse in her minds eye, but yet she was hesitant to offer any kind of assistance or to get help for her. Something about the younger woman felt threatening to her, as loathe as she was to admit it. She had no talent or skill, true, but she wasn't tainted.

Caistina looked down at her hands, worn with age and usage. She had blood on her hands, she had sins on her hands, unlike the younger woman. She may have been a high priestess but even she had to make deals with the devil. In this world, Lord Frieza was considered to be the 'devil'. No one knew of her mistakes, but herself. In her own mind, no one else was good enough to condemn her.

The older woman closed her eyes briefly and focused on the younger woman's waning life force before making her decision. Caistina opened her eyes and turned to walk further into the temple where such things wouldn't reach her minds eye.

---

Bulma regained consciousness in a bed unfamiliar to her. The room smelt strongly of chemicals and made her nose wrinkle in disgust. She opened her eyes to slits and took a look around. She immediately knew where she was, in the medical quarters of the palace. She had spent parts of her youth helping out in the medical quarters of the former planet. She had seen so much pain and suffering. Bulma had yet to find a time to come visit the new medical quarters of this palace.

She tried to sit up but found herself too weak. She laid back down into the pillows and shut her eyes, content in the quiet until it was shattered by the sound of footsteps and the door opening. She opened her eyes and tried to manage a small smile when she saw her father and the young woman from the council walk into her room.

"Bulma, I'm glad you're alright," her father stated, coming to stand by her bedside.

Bulma opened her mouth to speak, finding her voice shallow and weak, "I don't know what happened."

Chichi, the woman from the council, walked to the other side of Bulma's bed and placed a gentle hand on her wrist, "we're not exactly sure ourselves, but they're working to find out. In the mean time, we've placed Caistina in the position of advisor until you're well again."

Bulma rolled her eyes, opting not to give way to the negative words on her tongue.

Bulma's father patted her hand comfortingly, "they just want to run some tests on you, alright?"

She rolled her eyes, but nodded anyway.

---

The 'tests' they wanted to run lasted for four days, all of which Bulma was confined to the medical quarters. She had long since declared her boredom and the women waiting on her were getting tired of her attitude. It was on the fifth day that Bulma had been awakened from a light slumber in the afternoon by rushed, frenzied voices.

Bulma strained to hear what was being said but only caught snippets of conversations. She heard one of the ladies who normally waited on her say something about 'found in the forest, blood everywhere, poor thing' as she was passing by the doorway of the room. She heard other voices calling out for the best medical aid the palace had available.

As the group of people moved out of hearing range, Bulma sat back and cocked an eyebrow in interest. Normal civilians were only brought to the palace if they required the best emergency care , otherwise they were treated at the cities medical center. For a normal civilian to cause such a ruckus must mean that they were in pretty rough shape. Bulma sighed, she felt bad for whoever it was.

Later that day, she was declared able to resume her duties as advisor to the queen, much to Caistina's dismay. She soon found herself missing the short vacation she had in the medical quarters. It seemed that while she was enjoying her medical leave, Frieza had been keeping the royal house from their duties by demanding that they see to his needs. He had left the day prior and now everyone was rushing to get caught up to date. All appointments and meetings had been cancelled or postponed and they were now rescheduling.

The next few days made good on their promise of heavy workloads. Caistina was called in to see to some appointments that Juu was not able to, the ones of lesser importance. The council split it's members into two groups, one condemning thieves and crooks, the other overseeing all processes in the palace. Bulma was running around the palace delivering messages from and to the four different groups, all the while making sure all important information got back to Juu.

Bulma wasn't even sure how many days this had gone on for, but when it finally came to a close, she was more than happy to sit herself down in Juu's sitting room and relax, ignoring the fact that it was far past midnight. She had a question for Juu and was waiting for her to return from her final business of the day. Bulma was quite curious about the person delivered to the medical quarters during her last day there. She had heard nothing of them in the days since she had been released and hadn't had a chance to ask.

Juu walked in not long after Bulma had sat down and gave her friend a tired look, "go to bed, Bulma, it's late."

"I know," Bulma nodded, "but we haven't really talked since before my trip to the medical quarters. We haven't had the time."

Juu rolled her eyes, "what do you want?" she asked in a harsh tone, but sat down on one of her chairs none the less.

"I was just curious about whoever was taken to the medical quarters my last day there," Bulma stated, knowing Juu was in no mood for small talk. "I just thought it weird that I haven't heard anything about them."

"Bulma, it's nothing, really. We don't even have an idea who he is," Juu stated. "That young council woman's husband found him out in the forest. I guess he was in really rough shape, with a lot of dried blood surrounding his body and the faintest of heartbeats. Looked like he had been out there for a few days too." Juu shrugged, "I doubt he's waking up, anyway, from what I was told."

Bulma frowned, "that's horrible. I bet Frieza was behind it," she added in a voice dripping with venom.

Juu shook her head and got to her feet, "you really have to stop that."

Bulma just rolled her eyes as she stood. "You know I'm right," she said quietly before turning on her heel and leaving Juu's quarters. If they had been anywhere but in private, she would have gotten in trouble for leaving without being dismissed first. She hated the different social classes and how they were to act to one another.

Using the dim lights in the passageways, Bulma made her way through the palace. She was suddenly feeling very curious and that feeling had overcome her exhaustion. She tiptoed past guarded passageways and ducked around corners to avoid being seen. The last thing she wanted was to be caught and have to explain what she was doing wandering around the palace in the wee hours of the morning. Making her way to the medical wing, she hurried down the passageway that had the private medical rooms off of it.

"Bulma, is that you?"

Bulma heard her name and froze in mid-step. With a muttered curse she turned to the voice with a smile which turned more genuine when she saw who it was. "Yamcha," she greeted him in hushed tones, "how are you?" The tall, dark haired guard happily walked over to her. She had been romantically involved with him for years until she had requested a break in their relationship when Juu had been appointed Queen. Bulma had felt that focusing on her duties would be in her best interest and Yamcha would have proved to be a distraction.

"I'm fine, great, really," the man managed to say, obviously a little nervous. He hadn't seen Bulma since she had asked for a break. "How about you? You look really good."

"Thanks," Bulma replied and shrugged, "but these gowns are a little too much. I miss the days of simple clothes." She looked down at her attire with a sour face. She was wearing a long burgundy dress with a gold sash and a gold hem. The dress was sleeveless and left her arms bare, the only positive aspect of it in her own personal opinion.

"You looked good then, too," Yamcha told her quietly with a slight chuckle.

They stood in awkward silence for a few moments before Bulma found her voice again, "just give me some time, Yamcha, I'm adjusting to new things here."

"I know, Bulma, I know," he replied with a sigh, "but it just seems like you'll never be 'adjusted' enough to pick up where we left off."

"I…I don't know what to say," Bulma told him, making sure too keep eye contact with him. "I really am sorry."

Yamcha shook his head, "hey, it doesn't matter, right? We'll be back together before I know it." The forced cheerfulness in his voice sliced through Bulma, making her suddenly feel like there was a hole where her heart had once been. "What are you doing down around these parts in the middle of the night, anyway?"

Bulma shrugged and tried her best to keep her voice level, "just some curiosity, is all."

"It couldn't wait until the sun comes up?" Yamcha asked.

"I have stuff to do when the sun is up," Bulma replied, placing her hands on her hips and trying her hardest to look insulted, "I come down here to check on patients on my own time because that is the only time I have to come down here. We have been completely swamped with catching up on official palace business."

Yamcha rolled his eyes, "nice theatrics. Just do what you came down here to do and get out of here before one of the other guards see you."

Bulma smiled and leaned forward to place a quick kiss on his cheek. "Thanks, Yamcha," she said quietly before turning around and once again trying to locate the room she wanted.

It took her a few moments to find the right room. With a quick check around her to make sure the passage was empty, she slowly pushed open the door. She let out the breath she was holding as she slipped in soundlessly.

Bulma looked around, squinting in the dim light. Only one encaged lamp in a corner was lit for light. Bulma grabbed the other three lamps that were placed in the remaining corners and lit them all one by one, placing them back where she had gotten them.

When she finished replacing the last lamp she turned towards the bed where the wounded man was laying. Taking a few steps forward, she looked down at his face. Her eyes opened wide in surprise and confusion, while she barely stifled the gasp that threatened to come from her lips.

Bulma reached forward and pressed the palm of her hand gently to his cold cheek. She knew this man. She recognised the hard set of his features, even unconscious as he was, and she recognised the healing scar that adorned his right cheek. She had seen that scar be made, she had seen the blade slice through his flesh. This was the man that she was seeing in her nightmares, this was the man that she had seen be tortured repeatedly.

Bulma removed her hand from his cheek and stared at his face for a few moments. She never once thought that what she was seeing while she was sleeping, was actually happening to someone. She made a mental note to look through some of the books at the temple to try to find out just why she had been sent those images.

Bulma frowned when she noticed just how shallow his breathing was and pulled the sheet covering his still body down far enough so that she could see the bandages wrapped around his chest. They covered a large portion of his body. The size of the wound made Bulma understand why Juu said that she doubted he was going to wake up. That thought made her sad, although she didn't understand why. She didn't even know this man, his passing would make no difference in her life.

Then she realised something horrible. Was it possible that the reason he landed in the medical ward, was the exact same reason behind why she had landed there?


	4. Chapter 4: We're Bangans

Reality

A/N: Another chapter for you all. Thank you so much for your reviews, I love to read them.

Chapter 4 : We're Bangans

Sun filtered in through the small window to the right of Bulma's bed chambers. She pulled the blankets up over her head and mumbled something incoherent. She didn't know what time it was, nor did she want to. All that mattered to her was getting more sleep. After she had left the medical quarters the night before, she couldn't get the wounded man out of her mind. She knew nothing about the man other than the fact that he had gone through torture, but she felt as if she had a connection to him. She had this deep rooted feeling that he was a really nice guy who just got on the bad side of some malicious being (who she thought to be Frieza), and got the brunt of his anger and frustration.

A light tapping on her door brought her out of her half slumber. Bulma yelled out something that sounded roughly like 'come in'. She opened one of her eyes just enough to see the blonde servant, Launch, poke her head in.

"Bulma, her highness would like to know if you plan on dragging your sorry butt out of bed this afternoon," she smirked slightly before continuing, "her words, not mine."

Bulma groaned and threw a pillow towards the door, "can't a person get any sleep around here?"

"Sleep is a foreign concept, you should know that by now," Launch giggled as she avoided the pillow. "Get up and get prepared, the council is having a dinner shortly and your presence is requested."

Bulma rolled her eyes, "that really makes me want to get up." She did, however, sit up and drag a hand through her hair.

"I'll go let her highness know that you'll be down after you wash up," Launch told her, shutting the door behind her.

Bulma rolled her eyes. The council's dinners were not something that she looked forward to. She much preferred dining with the other members of the royal court, they were much more enjoyable to be around. She knew that the dinner probably signalled the need for conversation regarding important decisions involving the planet, but she could care less. Her opinion on the subject didn't matter to anyone. Juu was perfectly capable of forming opinions on her own and depended on her rarely, unlike the past royal heads and their advisors. She didn't really mind, she knew that she wasn't cut out to be an advisor and was more then happy to just be Juu's companion.

Bulma dragged herself out of bed and to her personal wash room. She had been required to go to the council dinners since she was a little girl. The council members always brought their family and hers was no exception. Her father was a council member because of his intellect, which she was happy that she inherited. Bulma loved her mother dearly, but she was a bit of an airhead. She still missed her every time she thought about her. Her mother had been a servant in the royal house, and her father had been one of the scientists that worked on the ships and various other technologies. They fell in love, married and had one daughter. Not long after, Bulma's father was chosen as council. Unfortunately, when Bulma was sixteen, her mother had contracted a strange illness and had passed away after months of suffering. That was almost ten years ago, and every time she thought about it, it brought tears to her eyes.

The other council members had reasons for their positions as well. Master Roshi, one of the other older men, was an amazing fighter and possessed many battle strategies. Forth, Caistina's brother, had replaced their father as a council member. He possessed limited magical abilities, and had an air to him that Bulma didn't trust. Gamble, yet another older man, was on the council for a reason Bulma didn't know. He had been a council member for well over fifty years. Chichi was the newest council member. She was chosen because of her keen mind, and the fact that she was considered the best choice above all other Bangou women. The council required that there always be one woman on the council.

Bulma re-entered her quarters and dressed quickly, knowing full well that she was probably already late for the dinner. Leaving her quarters, she made her way to the councils wing of the palace. It possessed a grand hall for dinners such as these. Bulma slipped in and took her customary seat next to Juu at the large circular table. A plate was already set for her and contained many different types of meats and vegetables. Bulma grimaced, she knew she wouldn't be able to finish all the food set in front of her.

---

Bulma had spent the better part of two hours with her elbow on the table and her chin in her hand. The council, Caistina and Juu were all having a heated discussion regarding that fifth city that was to be built. The family members had long since stood from the table and were standing at the opposite end of the hall, talking amongst themselves. Bulma envied them and wished that she could be one of them again. She had fond memories of leaving the council dinner table with Juu and some of the other teenage girls and going to whisper about the cute guys of the palace. Juu was, of course, infatuated with Master Roshi's adopted son, Krillin, and she would keep an eye on him at all times. One of the other girls had a huge crush on Yamcha, who was a guard in training at the time. Bulma, herself, hadn't had anyone special in mind.

She had long since forgotten what it was like to be carefree.

Juu and her had grown up together and were inseparable since they were toddlers. They used to do everything together and hardly fought. Now it seemed that Juu was always getting irritated at her about something. She cast a sidelong glance at her friend, who had just huffed and sat back in her chair. A sign that Juu was not getting what she wanted.

Bulma let her eyes wander over to the door when she noticed Launch speaking with one of the guards. Regular servants were not allowed to enter the councils wing of the palace, which peaked Bulma's curiosity as to why the woman was there. She watched as the guard tipped his head at Launch and sent her on her way. She recognised the guard as a young man named Ty, a friend of Yamcha's.

Ty had short violet hair and a very fair complexion with striking silver eyes. He was considered to be quite popular around the palace. Bulma smiled at him as he walked up to the table. "Excuse me, your highness and esteemed council members," he bowed his head slightly in respect before raising it to look at the group again, "but one of the servants have just relayed some interesting news. The patient in the medical ward has gone missing."

Goku, Chichi's husband and the man who had found the patient, had slowly inched over to hear what his fellow guard had been saying. "Missing?" He repeated, his tone sounding confused.

"How could he go missing?" Caistina's voice rose, the irritation in it not hidden at all, "he might as well have had a hole through his chest. He wasn't in any condition to breath, let alone 'go missing'." She spat the guards words back at him as she rose to her feet.

Goku shook his head slowly, "he was barely breathing when I found him," he said quietly, going to stand behind Chichi, placing his hands on her shoulders. "But he was strong, I could feel it," Goku added, looking at the different faces watching him, "I don't really know how I knew, but I did." He shrugged, wishing he could remember anything from his past before he had received a nasty bump on his head.

"This is unacceptable!" Caistina spoke up again, "what good are you guards if you can't even keep an unconscious man in one place?" She leaned forward, palms spread wide on the table, eyes boring holes in Ty's face.

"Let it be," Juu finally spoke up, dismissing the subject, "he was of no concern of ours. He was not one of us."

Bulma, who had been looking from one speaker to the next finally landed her gaze on Juu. "May I please be excused?"

Juu sent her a dirty look but nodded anyway.

"Thank you," Bulma replied and quickly rose from her seat. "Could you be so kind as to escort me to my quarters, Ty? I'm feeling a tad ill."

The guard smiled at her and nodded, "it would be my pleasure, Lady Bulma."

Bulma sent a final smile to the group before leading the guard out of the room and down the passage leading back to the center of the palace. She stopped in the center, which house a tall dome ceiling, and turned to Ty, "thank you so much for helping me get out of there. The man… any idea how he got out of here?"

"Lady Bulma, Queen Juu has requested that nothing be done about him," Ty stated, slightly taken aback.

"This isn't official palace business, alright?" Bulma said, and waited until he nodded. "Now, do you know anything?"

Ty shook his head, "no, I'm sorry. He just vanished."

Bulma smiled at him, "alright, I'll see what I can do. He couldn't have gotten too far." She turned to leave him there, walking on her own to the front doors of the palace. She nodded to the guards manning them and let them open the tall doors for her.

Bulma sighed and walked out into the sunlight and warm air. She closed her eyes and tried to focus on anything that could possibly lead her to him, with no luck. "Going to have to do things the hard way," she muttered to herself and started the long trek around the palace to the ship docks. Luckily, she had been taught how to drive a ship, and after gaining a single seat ship from the docks, started her descent.

She felt like she couldn't just leave him to his own devices. Her curiosity about him outweighed all else in her mind. The possibility of him being dangerous never crossed her thoughts.

Bulma made slow circles in the air watching the ground for any single person. She kept away from the cities and focused more on the lush green plains and hills. She found what she was looking for quite a ways from the palace, sitting under a tree.

She felt her heart jump in excitement over the sight of him. He was awake after all, although the fact that he was functioning physically was unexplainable to her. Bulma choose a pasture not far away and landed the ship. She climbed out and walked slowly up the hill, never taking her eyes off of him when he came into view. He was wearing baggy black pants and nothing but the bloody bandages covered his upper half. His eyes never moved, just kept staring ahead.

"Uh, hi…" Bulma said, her voice sounding horribly awkward.

Finally he turned his head to look at her. He took in her entire appearance before settling on her face, "what do you want?" he growled.

Bulma was a little taken back by the venom in his tone. She choose to ignore it. She walked over and sat down on the grass beside him. There was a gorgeous view from where they sat. One of the cities were in the distance with nothing but green grass and trees between them and it. "It's quite the view, huh? Really beautiful. It's a shame though, they're going to build another city almost exactly where we're sitting."

"Who's they?" the man asked after a moment of silence. His voice sounded wary and tired.

"Well, the council mostly. The Queen really doesn't care either way but-"

"Woman, who are you people?" he asked, cutting her off with an irritated tone and a roll of his dark eyes.

Bulma scoffed. "Woman?" she repeated, "such disrespect! I'll have you know I happen to be advisor to the Queen."

The man rolled his eyes again, clearly not impressed with her status. "You didn't answer my question," he reminded her.

"Well," she started thoughtfully, "we're Bangans of the planet Bangou."

"You're not warriors," he stated bluntly.

Bulma shook her head, "no, we're really not. We're peaceful and focus more on technological advances then making war. Although, somehow, we still seem to be stuck in pre-modern times," she added with a frown. "But I blame the council for that."

"No one was left on the planet, I take it?" He asked quietly.

"Well, there was this one man. Hit his head and can't remember a thing, poor guy. He's a guard at the palace," Bulma stated, "why does all this matter to you?"

The man just shook his head and got to his feet.

Bulma huffed and stood as well. "You're an alien, aren't you? You must be to heal so quickly."

He turned to face her with a snarl, "you foolish woman. I am not the alien, you and your pathetic group of peasants are."

"Excuse me?" Bulma replied. "This is our home planet."

"Not, it isn't," he replied, spacing out his words for emphasise, "this is a purged planet. This is my planet."

Bulma blinked, trying to make sense of everything he said for a few moments as he glared at her, "Frieza," she finally murmured. "He gave it to us."

"He wiped out my people," the man seethed. "Take me to the man you found here," he demanded.

"I can do that," Bulma nodded. "By the way, my name's Bulma," she stated with a cheery smile, "and yours?"

He smirked, "Vegeta," he told her and with a hint of amusement continued speaking, "if you're going back to the palace, you may want to make excuses for that," he gestured on the opposite side of the hill then that she had come up on.

With a confused look, Bulma stared at him. He only gestured over there again. Finally she bit her bottom lip and slowly walked to that side of the hill, not knowing what she'd find. She definitely didn't expect to find two of the palace guards lifeless bodies.


	5. Chapter 5: Trust

Reality

Chapter 5: Trust

Bulma sat on the hill, pieces of her long aqua hair fluttering in the wind. She frowned and pushed them back, knowing full well that she wouldn't be able to get them to stick back into her upswept mound of hair. She watched out of the corner of her eye as the man she had just met paced behind her. She knew that he was becoming frustrated with her. Since she had found the two guard's bodies almost an hour earlier, she had plopped her butt down and refused to move or speak to him. To tell the truth, she wasn't entirely sure what to think. He had seemed abrasive and rude while she was speaking to him, but to actually find out that he had murdered two men that she had personally known sent a permanent shiver down her spine. She had spent the better part of the previous hour trying to figure out just what to do. Even knowing that he was a murderer, she still felt a sort of compassion towards him and a want to help him. Along with those feelings were contradicting ones of disgust and dislike. Bulma was torn. She had told him that she would bring him back to the palace with her and she didn't want to go back on her word, but she knew it would be her position and freedom on the line if he were to murder any of the royal court.

"My patience is wearing thin," Vegeta seethed in his rough voice.

Bulma shot him a dirty look over her shoulder but didn't say a word. Was this man possibly worth the risk that she was to undertake if she brought him back with her? But, on the other hand, would he even let her leave if she decided against taking him?

"Woman," he spoke again, walking to stand next to her lowered form, "are you listening to me?"

Bulma growled and in as dangerous a voice as she could muster said, "I told you before, it's not 'woman'." She narrowed her eyes up at him before looking out at the landscape again.

"I don't much care what you prefer to be called, and I won't have to deal with you anymore as soon as you bring me to the Saiyan," Vegeta stated.

"It figures that you'd be a Saiyan," Bulma said with a roll of her eyes. "I heard of you guys, a planet of bloodthirsty warriors. If this was your planet and you all got wiped out, maybe you got what you deserved." Bulma didn't have a moment to blink before she found herself hauled to her feet by the large hand around her bicep and starring eye to eye with her strange new acquaintance.

"You will not speak of my race that way, you pathetic wench," he snarled in her face as Bulma tried her best to stand tall. "Maybe you'd like to see what it's like to have your planet purged of all living beings. I'll let you be the last I kill just so that you can feel what it's like to stand on ground once stood on by your race."

Bulma tried to keep her face free of the fear she was feeling. She would not let this brute think that he could intimidate her. After all, he was probably nothing more than a third class warrior on his planet, while she happened to be the advisor to the Queen. "Are you done?" She asked quietly, ignoring the pain his tightening hand was inflicting on her arm.

"Disrespectful bitch," he spat at her before letting go of her arm. "Take me to the Saiyan or I find him myself, and I promise there will be more blood on my hands by the end of the day if the latter happens."

Bulma glared at him but nodded anyway.

Vegeta smirked and inclined his head, "smart choice." He levitated off the ground a couple feet as he watched her roll her eyes and start off down the hill to where she had parked her ship.

--

Bulma had managed to slip Vegeta into the servants' door in the back of the palace. The security on that door left a lot to be desired and she had entered with no problem. The issue would be getting him from the servants' wing to the councils' wing where Goku and his wife resided. Bulma knew that if the Queen got word of her going to find Vegeta after she had given orders not to, she would be in trouble. She wanted to avoid the headache of explaining herself to Juu.

Bulma led him down a long passageway and stopped in front of a wooden door. She knocked once, hoping that Launch, the blond servant, would be in her room. Bulma planned to leave him there with Launch while she went to track down Goku. Unfortunately, her knock was met with no answer. Bulma cursed under her breath as Vegeta tapped his foot impatiently.

"There is no Saiyan in there," Vegeta stated, making sure his tone clearly depicted his waning patience.

"Oh, shush. I know that," Bulma replied, waving her hand to dismiss it. "Could you at least try to be civil? I'm risking my butt here for you, the least you could do is be a little grateful."

Vegeta just narrowed his eyes at her, deciding not to grace her with an answer.

Bulma bit her bottom lip as she tried to think of what would be the best course of action. She wasn't friendly enough with any of the other servants to trust them with her current grouchy problem. "We're going to have to try to slip you into the councils' quarters, unless by some stroke of luck we can track down Goku…" She trailed off.

Vegeta huffed and crossed his arms, "I tire of your games. I'll track down this 'Goku' myself."

Bulma watched with wide eyes as Vegeta stalked off down the passageway. She stood stunned for a moment before running after him. Oddly enough, he seemed to have a good handle on where he was headed, which to Bulma's relief, was away from the councils' wing. He led her to the outside of the throne room, where Goku was positioned as a guard. She saw the look of utter confusion on Goku's face as he watched the shorter man with the tall hair approach him.

"Kakarot," Vegeta spat, stopping in front of him, "of course it had to be you."

"Huh?" Goku replied with a chuckle, "Bulma, what's he talked about?" He threw the question over Vegeta's shoulder to where Bulma stood.

Bulma restlessly moved her balance from foot to foot, hoping the Juu wasn't in the throne room and had no plans to enter it any time in the near future. "Goku, this is Vegeta. He claims to be a part of the race this planet belonged to before us." She shrugged, "he wanted to meet you."

"I see, I think," Goku replied and stuck out his hand, "well, nice to meet you, friend."

Vegeta swatted his hand away with a swift motion, "I am no friend of yours."

Goku's smile faltered slightly, "Bulma says that you belong to race that was here before, but you hadn't been out there for that long."

Vegeta rolled his eyes, "did you figure that out all on your own?"

"Come on, what have I done to deserve such hostility?" Goku asked as his expression drooped.

Vegeta narrowed his eyes at the taller man, "you always were the dumb one."

"You wanted to see him so bad, so why are you insulting him now?" Bulma piped up, walking up to the pair.

Vegeta didn't even glance at her, "I have what I want, you are of no further use to me."

"Excuse me?" Bulma replied, her voice starting to get a high pitched tone to it, "who do you think you are? I can't just be dismissed like a servant."

Vegeta growled and turned to her, "you are below me as you are a woman. You will do what I say."

"You jerk," Bulma screeched, "I may be a woman, but I am not in any way below you, buddy. That may have been how things worked where you're from, but around here, women are treated with respect."

Goku chuckled nervously, "so, uh, if you know who I am, you knew me before I lost my memory, right?"

Vegeta turned his attention from the fuming female back to the other man. He nodded at him and crossed his arms.

Goku just nodded and smiled, "that's great. I won't feel so lost anymore with you around. Are you going to be staying in the palace?"

Bulma's mouth hung open for a moment before she composed herself enough to speak, "Goku! Are you nuts? You're inviting this monster to stay here? Juu is going to have a fit."

"Aw, come on, Bulma," Goku replied, his voice had a tinge of hurt, "it's not like he has anywhere to go. And he can really help me learn about myself."

Bulma crossed her arms and narrowed her eyes at her friend, "it's not up to me."

Vegeta rolled his eyes, "what makes you two think that I actually want to stay on this planet? I have more important things to do."

"Such as?" Bulma asked, turning from Goku.

Vegeta smirked, "vengeance."

Bulma was about to open her mouth to chide him when she heard soft footsteps coming towards the throne room. Two pairs of heavier footsteps flanked the softer ones. "Shit!" Bulma exclaimed and grabbed Vegeta's forearm, pulling it. "Come with me, we have to make ourselves scarce."

Vegeta merely shook her off his arm, "you can leave. I already dismissed you."

"Come on," Bulma pleaded, "I'll be in so much trouble if the queen finds you here."

"Not my concern," Vegeta sneered.

"You are such a jerk!" Bulma yelled and smacked his arm, which he didn't even register.

At that moment, Juu, followed by two palace guards, turned the corner. She frowned and walked up to the group standing outside her throne room. She had known that Bulma wouldn't follow her orders. The girl was too headstrong for her own good. "What is the meaning of this?"

Bulma yeeped and jumped back, "I found him wandering around the palace."

Juu gave Bulma a look that she knew the aqua haired girl would translate into a 'liar' accusation. She didn't call Bulma on it as she didn't want it reaching the council that she had disregarded the queen's orders. They weren't all that fond of Bulma as it was, and she didn't want to give them any reason to demote her. Instead, she focused her attention on Vegeta. "What is your business here?"

Vegeta looked at her with narrowed eyes, "I suppose you're the one who runs things around here."

"Correct," Juu answered, "but since you are the one who dropped in on us, I think you should be the one to answer questions, not ask them." She waited a beat, and when he didn't say anything, she continued, "who are you, where are you from, and how did you manage to heal so fast?"

"My first question would have been, 'do you pose a threat to us'." Vegeta smirked at the blonde woman.

"Maybe, but you still aren't in peak condition. You may have recovered somewhat, but you still had a hole through your abdomen," Juu replied, easily keeping calm, "I am not stupid enough to believe that you could do us as a population any serious harm."

Vegeta took a step forward, "is that a challenge?" he growled.

Bulma jumped in front of Vegeta. "Juu, his name is Vegeta, he was an inhabitant of this planet before we were here, and he heals quickly because he's a Saiyan." She blurted it all out in one breath.

Juu cocked an eyebrow at Bulma, "you know an awful lot for someone who just encountered him 'wandering around'."

Bulma chuckled nervously and lowered her head.

Juu looked over Bulma's shoulder, "is this all true?"

"Mostly," Vegeta shrugged, "except I prefer Prince Vegeta."

Bulma snorted, "I'm sure."

Juu nodded as she thought over the information provided. She was curious as to what had happened to him and where he had come from. She also guessed that he could be a valuable ally if he were to stay on the planet. She looked past Bulma to him, "I wish to speak with you in private. You can wash up in one of the spare rooms of the palace, then meet me in the council room in an hour. Bulma will show you to where you need to go."

Bulma narrowed her eyes at Juu, "are you sure that's wise?"

Juu nodded. She was not scared of the man in front of her. She was an accomplished fighter herself, having taken lessons and had many fights as a youth. "Bring him to me in an hour Bulma," she said before moving past them and into the throne room with her two guards still flanking her.

Bulma turned to Vegeta, "Prince?" She repeated in a disbelieving tone.

Vegeta smirked, "about time you learned your place," he told her and started walking off without her.

"Arrogant…" Bulma started under her breath but trailed off as she hurried to catch up to him. "So why didn't you mention that to me before?"

"You weren't important enough to know," he replied, "now, where am I going?" He stopped and turned to look at her.

Bulma pointed down a passageway, "that way. I'll take you, since Juu's decided to punish me as such." She started to lead him down the passage, thankful for his silence as she lead him into spare quarters that weren't too far from hers. She sat down on a wooden stool to the side of the room and pointed to an open doorway. "You can wash up in there, you know, get rid of some of that dried blood. I'll see if I can find any suitable clothing."

He gave her a curt nod and headed through the doorway.

Bulma rolled her eyes and leaned back against the wall. She didn't know quite what to make of the dark haired man that had seemed to enter into her life. She didn't trust him in the least, and would think herself crazy if she did. She was wary of what came out of his mouth, and didn't know whether she believed him to be royalty or not. She had to admit to herself that he did seem to carry himself and conduct himself in a manner befitting royalty. From what she had observed, she had deduced that whatever connection she had to him was one-sided. He seemed to know nothing of her, which she was grateful for.

--

Juu sat in the council room by herself as she awaited the presence of her guest. The room was rather small, with a large wooden table in the center and several chairs surrounding it. Several tapestries hung on the walls, but nothing too lavish. She had come down early to give herself some time to think. She knew of the Saiyans and of their ways. As royalty she was subjected to special instruction in her teen years as to different cultures and species. The Saiyan race was not one that she ever wanted to come face to face with. She was told stories of their cruelty, and their bloodshed. She knew they were a race of warriors and not one to be taken lightly, either in a group or by themselves. She believed the stranger in the palace to be the Prince, as she could vaguely recall seeing pictures of the Saiyan king, who bore a strong resemblance to her new acquaintance. She knew that if he were to recover to full strength she would not stand a chance against him, and she was one of the best fighters that the planet had. They would be doomed. As she saw it, she had two choices; she could either get him on their side, or destroy him now while she had the chance. She glanced toward the doorway when it opened. Expecting to see the short man, she was surprised when Caistina entered.

"I hope I'm not interrupting anything, my Queen," Caistina stated as she entered and closed the door behind her.

"Not as of yet," Juu replied, "but I'm expecting someone."

"I know, I heard from one of the guards that Bulma had come across him," Caistina said, "and I just wanted to offer my advice, as she's too busy with him to pay you any heed."

"I don't require advice, Caistina," Juu told her, "I am fully aware of what I'm doing."

"You are so trusting and good, my Queen, I just don't wish to see anyone take advantage of you," Caistina told her, her voice smooth, "you shouldn't believe this man. My sources have told me that he is a traitor, and cannot be trusted."

"I am wary of him, but I am not going to condemn him without proof or reason," Juu told her. She hated the formal way in which she was expected to address people.

"My Queen, I hope you don't think I'm speaking out of turn, but my sources, they-"

"Caistina!" Juu interrupted her, "I have made my choice and honestly, unless you can provide these 'sources' you speak of, I don't care to hear anything more that 'they' have to say."

Caistina's lips curled up in anger as she turned and left the room, slamming the door behind her. She was not used to being disrespected so. She was a respected member of the court and was supposed to be treated as such. Everyone listened to her opinion. She stopped in the passageway and watched as the aqua haired wench led the despicable Saiyan to the council room. She seemed to be happily ranting away about something, while the Saiyan nodded at the proper intervals, probably oblivious to everything she was saying.

He was supposed to be dead. He wasn't supposed to be found until he had long since passed onto the other side. But here he was, breathing, walking, talking, and making deals with Bangou royalty. Lord Frieza's plan had failed. He had set it up to look like Vegeta had died with the other Saiyans on the planet and that his body had been missed on the clean-up of the purged planet. Killing royalty was not something that was looked upon nicely. The lord had charged her with making sure the Prince didn't recover, and she had failed. She would clean up her mess and make amends with Lord Frieza. She would take care of the Prince herself.


End file.
